CNET News Video: Amazon launches the Kindle DX

CNET News Video: Amazon launches the Kindle DX

CNET TV was onsite at the launch of Amazon's new Kindle DX, for which the company has partnered with newspapers, textbook publishers, and universities. The device comes out this summer.

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>> Caroline McCarthy: What's up? I'm Caroline McCarthy for CNET TV in New York. Now, school might be just about out for summer, but Amazon.com has the fall semester on the mind already with the launch of its new Kindle DX. The larger-screen version of its e-reader device is geared toward readers of documents, newspapers, and especially textbooks.
>> Jeff Bezos: Kindle has a 9.7 inch display with auto rotation. Has 3G wireless access to 275,000 books. Three point three gigabytes of storage which lets you carry with you up to 3,500 books. Native PDF support. You never have to pan. You never have to zoom. You never have to scroll. "New York Times" best sellers and most new releases are $9.99. And there's no multi-year wireless contract, no monthly service payments. Four hundred and eighty-nine dollars.
>> Caroline McCarthy: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was clearly trying to channel Steve Jobs in his unveiling of the Kindle DX at Pace University.
>> Jeff Bezos: How in the world did you make it backwards? [laughter]
>> Caroline McCarthy: He's got a ways to go, but he did get in the important details. There's not a whole lot new about the Kindle DX aside from its larger size, landscape mode, and native support for Adobe PDF documents. What's buzzworthy are the partnerships. As part of the Kindle DX's pitch to the academic community, Amazon has partnered with three textbook publishers, Pearson, Cengage Learning, and Wiley, to get their books on the Kindle. It's also partnered with Arizona State University, Princeton University, the University of Virginia, Reed College, Pace University, and Case Western Reserve University on a test program this fall to see how students use the Kindle DX. Many people were speculating that the new device would also appeal to the struggling newspaper industry and, indeed, Amazon announced as part of a launch event that the "New York Times", the "Boston Globe", and the "Washington Post" will be testing out subscriptions in the Kindle DX's larger format. We'll see how it helps. The "Boston Globe", after all, is still in danger of being shut down. Four hundred and eighty-nine dollars is a hefty price tag especially since no one's sure yet just how much less expensive an electronic textbook will be than a paper one, but one thing's for sure, this will free up some space in those cramped dorm rooms that college students live in. And they'll have room for the things that really matter. You know, like video game consoles and cases of Coors Light. I'm Caroline McCarthy for CNET TV. Happy reading.
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